PAUL BOSTAPH Says Rejoining SLAYER In 2013 Was 'Like Coming Home'

Santiago Bluguermann of Radio Cantilo conducted an interview with SLAYER drummer Paul Bostaph before the band's May 6 appearance at the Maximus festival at Tecnópolis in Villa Martelli, Argentina. Asked about his pre-show ritual, Bostaph said: "I have a practice pad, a drum set, and like an hour before the show, I get changed and I start doing that and stretch and stuff like that."

He added: "Warming up allows me to be very loose when I hit the stage, and I play at a higher level when I do that."

Bostaph, who was previously SLAYER's drummer from 1992 until 2001 and recorded four albums with the band, rejoined SLAYER in 2013 after the group's original drummer, Dave Lombardo, was effectively fired from the band due to a contract dispute with the other members of the veteran California-based thrash metal act.

Speaking about the differences between being in SLAYER in 2017 and his time with the group in the 1990s, Bostaph said: "Yeah, it's different because I've had some time away, and coming back to it, it feels like coming home."

Revealing that "the end of 'Jihad'" is the most difficult and physically tiring part of the SLAYER set for him to perform, Bostaph said that "pure instinct" is what drives his playing when he is on stage with his bandmates. "That's where you wanna be — you want it to be natural," he explained. "Every once in a while, when you play songs over and over and over again, you've played it so much, you're on autopilot, and then your mind starts to wander. That's when you make mistakes."

In an interview with Fuse, SLAYER guitarist Kerry King stated about Bostaph: "Paul, I mean, he's a machine. I don't worry about him at all. He never would have been out of SLAYER if he didn't quit twice. It was never over anything personal — he was always my friend — so it was very easy for him to come back and be a part again."

Speaking to Loudwire about Bostaph's contributions to SLAYER's latest album, "Repentless", King said: "I think it's just making the unit whole, more than anything. Of course, Paul can play the shit out of the drums. I didn't realize — and I don't mean this in a detrimental way to Paul — I never realized Paul had so many niche SLAYER fans who are just Bostaph fans; I didn't realize that, and a lot of people had mentioned that to me since Paul has been working on the record. And I think that's great. I used to say 'God Hates [Us All]' was his 'Reign In Blood' — Bostaph's. The new one is his 'Reign In Blood'. The new one's… I would play any song live."

"Repentless" debuted at No. 4 on The Billboard 200, having shifted 50,000 equivalent album units in the week ending September 17, 2015.